Apparatus for dewatering and classifying ores.



R. P, AKINS. I APPARATUS FOR DEWATERING AND GLASSIFYING OBES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 14, 1909.

Patented May 16, 191i.

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WITNESSES:

INVENTOR,

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R. P. AKINS. I APPARATUS FOR DEWATERING AND UL ASSIFYING ORES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 14, 1909.

Patented May 16, 1911.

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INVENTORI I WITNESSES P. P. AK/MS,

" UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

RANDALL P. 'AKINS, 0F DENVER, COLORADO, ASSIGNOR TO COLORADO IRON WORKS00.,

'- OF DENVER, COLORADO.

APPARATUS FOR DEW'ATERING AND CLASSIFYING ORES.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

' Be it known that I. RANDALL P. AKINs, citizen of the United States,residing at Denver, Colorado, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Apparatus for Dewatering and Classifying Ores, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved apparatus for dewatering'andclassifying ores, and comprises the novel features of construction andarrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described andparticularly set forth in the appended claims.

An embodiment of my invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view; Fig. 2 is a longitudinalvertical section; Fig. 3 is a transverse sect-ion on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;and Fig. 4 is a detail, and Fig. 5 is a view of a modification.

Referring by reference characters to this drawing, the letter Adesignates a stationary tank or trough, approximately semi-circular incross section, and designed to be support-ed, in practice, in anysuitable manner so that its bottom will be inclined from the horizontal,as shown. Journaled within this tank is a rotary shaft B designed to bedriven by any suitable means, of which the gearing B B is illustrative.This rotary shaft carries, for a portion of its length, a spiralconveyer consisting of a continuous spiral flight or flights, asindicated at C, the continuous conveyer being located in that portion ofthe trough which is lowermost so as to be partially submerged in theliquid contained therein. Succeeding the continuous spiral and lying inthe more elevated portion of the trough is a section of interruptedspirally located flights or rabbles D, which, for convenience, I mounton the same shaft as the continuous spiral, as by this arrangement bothmay be operated from the same shaft and operating mechanism. Thesespiral flights leave rabbles or blades which are staggered along theshaft of the conveyer with relation to each other as shown in Figs. 1, 2and 5, so that they not only serve to convey the material toward themore elevated portion, but thoroughly agitate it as each succeedingblade tends to have a plowing effect upon the material left by thepreceding blade while the liquid can drain freely back through andbetween the blades or interrupted spirals.

At the side of the trough is located the feed opening which extendsdownward and communicating with said trough at point e which is belowthe liquid level within the trough, so that the material feed iscompletely submerged before entering into the trough, thus making asubmerged feed opening at the side of the trough. At the lower end islocated an overflow receptacle F into which the slime and lighter.particles overflow, and from which they may be conveyed in any suitablemanner to a receiving tank for further treatment. At the upper end islocated a sand receiving hopper G. The trough, at its lower part, isprovided with an intermediate settling compartment H into which anycoarser particles flowing'toward the slime overflow F may settle, andout of which they may be drawn as a separate product by the gateddischarges 72,. A valved water supply pipe I communicates with thebottom of this settling compartment by which an upward flow of liquidmay be caused in the compartment, and by which the coarser particleswhich have settled therein may be washed and freed from any clay orslimy material, such material rising, by force of the incoming liquid,and overflowing into the collecting chamber F. Gated openings areprovided in the bottom of the compartments F and G, and at the lower endof the trough, as indicated at f, a and g.

In the operation of the device the continuous and interrupted spiralsare set in rotation, and the pulp having been properly treated, is fedinto the compartment E, whence it passes through the openings 6 into thebottom of the trough. The rotation of the continuous spiral agitates thepulp and causes the lighter particles of ore or slimes to be retained insuspension, the coarser particles settling through the liquid. Theinterrupted spiral flights or rabbles cause the heavier particles of orewhich have settled to the bottom of the tank and been conveyed to theend of the continuous spiral, to be carried on up to the sand deliveryend, where they are delivered into the sand discharge hopper, the waterand lighter particles draining back through the interrupted spirals. o

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented lIay 16, 1911. Applicationfiled September 14, 1909. Serial No. 517,713. i

In Fig. 5 I have shown another method of applying the rotary shaftcarrying the continuous and interrupted spiral conveyer flights, asalready described, in a trough of suitable section provided with ahorizontal bottom. The shaft B, with its various attachments, as alreadydescribed is journaled, so as to revolve in the tank or trough A at asuitable inclination and speed. This trough A may be made of anysuitable material, and of similar section as trough A, but is made withhorizontal bottom instead of inclined. In the operation in this tank,the sands and coarser particles fill the space I under the spirals andform a porous filter bed in this section of the tank, so that whenseparating the sands from the slime, the liquid carried by these coarsersands will filter down through this filter bed and seek the level of theoverflow at F, thus assisting the interrupted spirals in the dewateringof the sand or coarser particles, and make of the whole, in some cases,a more suitable arrangement of the inclined continuous and interruptedspirals. In this construction, the material which accumulates, as shown,practically forms an inclined bottom up which the ore is caused totravel by the spirals, but being porous, permits the draining back asdescribed.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is 1. An apparatus forclassifying ores comprising a trough having a discharge at one end forthe slimes, a discharge at the opposite end for the sands or coarsermaterial, and an inclined agitating and separating conveyer having oneend partially submerged and provided with a continuous spiral at thesubmerged end, the opposite end having an interrupted spiral formingrabbles or blades staggered with relation to each other along theconveyer shaft adapted to convey, plow and turn the material beingconveyed to the upper discharge end.

2. An apparatus for classifying ores comprising a trough having adischarge at one end for the slimes, a discharge at the opposite end forthe sands or coarser material, and an inclined agitating and separatingconveyer having one end partially submerged and provided with acontinuous spiral at the submerged end, the opposite end having aninterrupted double spiral forming rabbles or blades staggered inrelation to each other along the conveyer shaft adapted to convey, plowand turn the material being conveyed to the upper discharge end.

8. In an apparatus for classifying ores, the combination with a singletrough having a discharge at one end for the slimes and a discharge atthe opposite end for the sands or coarser material, of an inclinedagitating and separating conveyer rotatably mounted therein and havingone end partially submerged, said conveyer comprising a single shaftcarrying a continuous spiral at the submerged portion and an interruptedspiral forming rabbles or blades staggered with relation to each otheralong the conveyer shaft for the remaining portion of said troughadapted to plow and turn the material being conveyed to the upperdischarge end.

In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

RANDALL P. AKINS.

lVitnesses W. R. CADY, JOHN E. RoTI-IwnLL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

